Fisheries and Aquaculture
November 18, 2009
NAFO Fails to Protect
Canadian Stocks Again
The Northwest Atlantic
Fisheries Organization (NAFO) has once again failed to
protect fish stocks off Canada�s east coast. In a
special meeting of NAFO that was held in London, England
on November 16, the organization decided against closing
the Flemish Cap shrimp fishery in NAFO area 3M, despite
warnings from the NAFO Scientific Council that the stock
has collapsed and that the fishery should be closed.
�Our government is once again reminded of the need for a
system of custodial management,� said the Honourable Tom
Hedderson, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture. �The
decision to continue this fishery in the face of clear
scientific advice and low commercial catch rates, speaks
volumes as to NAFO�s lack of commitment to conservation
and sustainable management.�
The Canadian delegation tabled a proposal to have this
fishery shut down, in keeping with scientific advice.
�Even though the Canadian delegation held firm in
advancing their position and took the lead in proposing
the closure, the unfortunate reality is that NAFO has
yet again demonstrated its inability to provide
effective stewardship of fish stocks,� said Minister
Hedderson.
The Canadian proposal was supported by Norway, the
United States and Iceland. However, six other member
states supported a European Union proposal to simply
reduce the allocated fishing days for shrimp on the
Flemish Cap by 50 per cent. The number of fishing days
allocated to the countries engaged in this fishery have
not been anywhere close to being completely utilized in
recent years. Therefore, there will not be any effective
reduction in the amount of shrimp that can be taken at
all. This means that a significant fishery can still
take place.
Of great concern to Newfoundland and Labrador is the
consequence of this decision for the 3L shrimp fishery,
which straddles the 200 mile exclusive economic zone,
off Canada�s east coast. This area is largely fished by
this province�s inshore and offshore shrimp fleets. With
the low catch rates and smaller shrimp in 3M, there will
now be a powerful economic incentive to misreport 3L
landings and overfish this stock, which is also showing
early signs of resource decline.
�Our government is now calling upon the Government of
Canada to maintain a high level of vigilance in the
monitoring of foreign fishing in the 3L region,� said
Minister Hedderson. �We continue to ask the Federal
Government to pursue a system of custodial management so
that we can achieve the conservation that is required to
protect the Newfoundland and Labrador fishing industry
into the future.�
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Media contact:
Lori Lee Oates
Director of Communications
Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture
709-729-3733, 690-8403
oatesll@gov.nl.ca
2009 11 18
10:35 a.m. |